The state unit of the Congress-affiliated National Students' Union of India (NSUI) on Monday accused the ruling party and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) of influencing the appointment of university vice-chancellors.
NSUI state chief Ashutosh Chouksey made the allegations at a press conference here on Monday.
The Madhya Pradesh Private University Regulatory Commission recently declared the appointments of vice-chancellors in 32 of the 53 private universities illegal, citing violations of University Grants Commission (UGC) standards.
Chouksey demanded that the investigation extend to government universities, where BJP and RSS affiliates were being appointed to vice-chancellor roles, bypassing the rules.
The student wing leader cited the example of Vinod Mishra, a former BJP district president, who was recently appointed vice-chancellor of Rani Avantibai Lodhi University, Sagar.
NSUI further alleged that such political appointments had resulted in only one government university being ranked in the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF), while others ranked poorly, raising concerns about the state’s education quality.
The Congress affiliate also brought up the appointment of Professor Rajesh Kumar Verma as vice-chancellor of Rani Durgavati University, Jabalpur.The NSUI alleged that Verma, who obtained his PhD on 25 November 2008, did not meet the minimum qualification of 10 years of teaching experience required for the position.
